This invention relates to production of hydrogen from fuels comprising at least one of carbon, oxygen or hydrogen and more specifically to production of hydrogen in a compact reformer.
Currently, the most cost effective method of producing hydrogen is centralized steam reforming of fuels such as natural gas and methanol. Rising energy prices and concern for the environment are prompting increased attention to hydrogen as a renewable energy source. Hydrogen has been proposed as a clean fuel for the future with applications in vehicle and stationary power (electric utility).
The largest volumes of merchant hydrogen are consumed in ammonia plants, in refineries and in methanol production. Only a fraction of hydrogen is currently used for energy purposes. However, hydrogen's share in the energy market is increasing with the implementation of fuel cell systems and the growing demand for low emission or zero-emission fuels.
Steam methane reforming (SMR), autothermal reforming (ATR) and catalytic partial oxidation (CPO) have been studied for distributed hydrogen generation from natural gas (NG) for fuel cells applications. SMR utilizes high temperature reforming catalysts to convert NG and steam to a synthesis gas (syngas). Conventional ATR typically includes a catalyst to facilitate both SMR and CPO reactions. Conventional SMR systems are not compact since large heat exchange surface area are required to provide heat to the endothermic steam methane reforming reaction.
Direct CPO (without an SMR catalyst) is a compact system. However, CPO generates a syngas with a low hydrogen (H2) to carbon monoxide (CO) ratio (˜2) and hence is better suited for Fischer-Tropsch or methanol synthesis.
Therefore there is a need for a compact system for hydrogen production that is cost effective with efficient heat integration.